English language arts teacher Denise Key was transfered to Bartlett Middle School to help accommodate a large increase in the student body. (John Carrington/Savannah Morning News)

Bartlett Middle School's turnaround plan started off topsy-turvy, but faculty, staff and parents are determined to make the innovative new program work.

This summer, Savannah-Chatham public schools officials gave Bartlett a new plan and purpose to stave off state interveners who demanded the struggling school be revamped and reorganized.

As part of the district's Passport to Excellence reform plan, a Center for Advanced Learning was established at Bartlett to attract the academically gifted.

Newly installed Principal James Heater replaced 80 percent of Bartlett's staff and hired teachers who were all specially trained to teach gifted students. Attendance zone lines were redrawn to make the inner-city school more suburban. And the academic structure was set up so that even the average and below-average students receive gifted instruction through an academic nurturing program, called AVID, to help them realize their full academic potential.

Parents who had grown disillusioned with public middle schools became eager for their children to fill one of Bartlett's 550 seats. The 2010-11 school year was all set for a fresh start.

Then 900 students showed up for registration, and Bartlett's fresh start quickly turned funky.

"We had 900 middle school students using the restrooms in a school built for 450," said Heater. "You can't even begin to imagine what that was like at the end of the day."

To make matters worse, a glitch in the computer system meant all 900 class schedules had to be reworked manually. Heater had to bring in eight long-term substitute teachers to help accommodate the student influx, and there were still as many as 37 students in each class. There weren't enough desks, there weren't enough buses, there weren't enough books, and there wasn't enough space in the lunch room.

"... There are several schools where the (rezoning) data used was not as accurate as was expected, i.e., overcrowding at Bartow and Bartlett," said Superintendent Thomas Lockamy. "Some minor adjustments will be needed for the upcoming school year."

In the meantime, Bartlett was overrun by a prickly bunch of pubescent students - the bulk of whom were seventh-graders coming from rival schools on Savannah's east, west and southsides.

"Seventh-graders are the ones who are still figuring out where they are," Heater said. "They're squirrely."

Each morning, Bartlett's front office was overrun by 70 tardy students and kids with conflicting personalities who were making unnecessary commotion. In order to start reforming Bartlett, adjustments had to be made to handle this year's crowd.

Making it work

Once enrollment numbers were finalized, Heater could hire 19 new teachers, who came from schools throughout the district. Although some requested transfers, many were reassigned and only half of them were trained as gifted instructors. But they were determined to make the best of their situation and help the reform plan work.

"We did lots of data analysis and saw that the majority of our seventh-graders were between the 2.0 and 3.5 grade point average range," Heater said. "We needed to give them the tools to step it up before they could decide to slack off."

The new teachers made it possible to reduce class sizes. Bartlett went from 11 to 12 ninth-grade classes, from 11 to 14 seventh-grade classes and from 10 to 12 eighth-grade classes. Nine of the teachers who were hired at the last minute volunteered to begin gifted instruction training immediately.

Although the move to Bartlett wasn't her idea, seventh-grade language arts teacher Denise Key does her job with enthusiasm. Her students love her class. Recently, they made music videos featuring songs they wrote about the parts of speech.

"I have all kinds of teachers that try to help me with my grades and stuff," said student Sierra Venn. "Instead of just telling you what to do; they explain it so you understand, and they make it fun."

"The teachers are good," he said. "Even if you start to fail or act up, they want to help you catch up so you can play sports and do the things you want to do. I like it here."

It takes a village

As everyone works to make the new school program work, Bartlett's plan to enhance learning for the gifted and raise rigor and outcomes for average and struggling students has begun to take shape.

"The atmosphere is much better," said Mark Hulme, computer teacher who has worked at Bartlett for seven years.

"The kids are more willing to participate, more engaged in their lessons and happier to come to school. It's a much happier place to come to work."

Sixth- and eighth-grade students have begun taking advanced courses with resources and assistance from their AVID instructors.

"The kids are settled in and working hard," said AVID instructor Nordy Meguiar. "AVID is teaching the study skills and organizational skills."

Below-average students were placed in a credit recovery program where they receive targeted instruction three times a week. And advanced students are on track to have earned three high school credits by the time they complete the eighth grade.

Eighth-grade ITBS scores rose in every subject area over last year's scores. Bartlett's Quiz Bowl Team is the only school in the district that made it to the regional competition, and three athletic teams competed in the playoffs.

"Things have calmed, you can read it on my face," Heater said with a big grin. "We still have a lot to do, but it's working. We have come a long way."

Parents have also had to step up their efforts. If their child arrives late to school, a parent must sign them in and personally escort them to class. After a few embarrassing trips through the halls in their house shoes, more and more parents are getting their kids to school on time. Daily tardy violations have dropped from 70 to 15.

Dionne Hazel's seventh-grade son was a student at Southwest Middle last year. He was one of many students who was reassigned to Bartlett when the attendance zone changed.

"I don't like having to walk my child to class," Hazel said. "But he's learning, and that's most important to me."